Continued Adventure

Unable to pry anything open, Berith gives up, not willing to risk another drop down into the unknown. Putting away her crowbar, she shakes her head at Elspaeth and heads back toward the stairs. "You're right, better not to chance it. We'll let Borgo know when he's up and we can always try again later."

"Down we go," Berith mutters as she draws her sword again and slowly starts down the stairs. Elspaeth's lantern casting some light to guide her way.

The party make their way back down the stairs to the crossbow room, with Elspeath's light pushing the darkness back. Stopping at the bottom of the stair, they can see it as they left it. Dwarven doors closed, shattered bones scattered on the floor, crossbows poised. The silence is oppressive as the soft clicking has long since stopped.

Crouching down to crawling, the party make their awkward way across the room below the invisible plane which triggers the traps. Knowing the trick, it doesn't take them much time to get across with their Goblin cargo. Which is fortunate as it would be problematic to be set upon in such a situation.

Upon reaching the stairs, the party starts down towards the room where the limb beasts were destroyed. From the top of the stair, Elspaeth's lantern easily illuminates the full length of the stairs and a goodly portion of the the floor below. Bits of detritus and scattered papers can been seem as well as some black fluid from the felled creatures to the left.

I'm making the presumptions that you guys don't want to hand out in the trap room. Feel free to post something that contradicts the above and I will readjust it.

As for the room below, you remember that you slew the two creatures to the left of the stariwell as you look down it. The fluid is some of what leaked out of them upon death. You can even see some of your foot prints as at least some of you trode in it to get to the stairs. You remember that you came from the left and had entered the room from a small vertical shaft with a ladder leading up. You also remember a 10" stairwell to the right which lead down.

Not a worry!

While there are certainly places and pile of broken furniture that would keep you out of immeidate view from some directions; similarly to the first creature you encountered, your light would stand out. If anyone or anything passed by one of the two stairwells or happened to look into the open chest that hid the tunnel down, they would almost definitely see your flickering light. They might also be able to creep up on you unawares.

While there are no immediate threats, I would not consider it safe and certainly not secure. Functionaly, what that means is more frequent random monster checks. You guys have been very lucky with your checks so far.

The only places that you can think of that you might be able to make safe would be the fountain/anvil room or the scribe room with the tunnel in the chest. The fountain/anvil one had a door you could close (and secure using the ring pulls) and no other apparent entrances. The scribe room had only two apparent entrances but you could close and secure the doors and find some way to secure / block the chest?

Faced with the prospect of spending the night in this foul smelling place and uncertainty about whether that tarry creature could slip through some crevice to assail them while sleeping, the group decides to leave the temple and return to town. After carrying the unconscious Goblin out to the edge of the woods you decide to make camp with Elspeath taking first watch, Thak the second and Berith the last watch.

Berith startles awake in mild confusion with the early morning sun warming her face. Thinking, "Why didn't Thak wake her? Even though we are only a half a day's walk to the village, he should have..." Then she notices that Thak is not around the campsite. As she rises, Borgo sits up groaning and holding his side. Waking Elspeath to check on Borgo, Berith leaves to scout around the campsite.

Returning after a few minutes late with Thak's sheathed sword, Elspeath points out Thak's pack against a fallen log. Berith throws down his sword next to it and reports that she found some tracks leading back in the general direction of the temple. Unsure what has happened to the warrior, the group eat a quick and quiet meal before making their was slowly back to the village.

The party trudges into the village and the first villager they see, initially smiles broadly and waves. Taking in the sight of you, disheveled, harrowed, he drops his rake and runs towards the village inn. Other look out to see what the urgency is about and stop to stare. Some go back into their homes and close thier doors or shutters. Others call out weakly in greeting. Some hurry to the inn, which must be your destination. One old woman brings you a skin of light beer and hurries back into her home.

You complete your procession at the inn, where you collapse into chairs around a table. The room is already filling by the time you get comfortable and the innkeeper has brought you mugs of ale and plates of cold meat, cheese and bread. The villagers wait with only a few whispers to each other, waiting for you to finish your meal, but you hear their questions. What of the missing? Where are the other adventurers? What happened? Will they leave us?

Just as your eating slows, a way is made as the Village Head Man enters and slowly sits at your table. The expression on his face is all the prompting you need as you recount you bitter travails of the temple in the wood. There are gasps and protestations to the Gods at the mention of Albrecht's fate. Mutters of quiet praise for the Priest's bravery and self-sacrifice. And worry and horror at the dissappearance of Thak.

When you finish, the villagers become louder and more agitated, their voices growing in volume and pace as panic begins to build, the Head Man stops this cold with resounding shoult of his voice. With quiet mostly restored, he gives you additional news that another family had been discovered missing in the time you were away and that some folks were talking of leaving. The situation was dire.

Two days have passed since, the three became six again. It was agreed that the shares in the venture held by the three who were lost would go to Marev, Vennok and Nord. With Borgo, Elspaeth and Berith rested and restocked from the towns holdings and the new comers ready we find the party having finished breaking the morning fast. Sailie, the inkeeps wife collects your dirty plates nervously, but quietly. You can see the doubt in her eyes, she weighs your fortunes and her own lifes future in her mind and you can tell she has no answers.

You have spent the last two night telling and retelling the new members of what you saw and encountered in the temple, so they should have some idea of what may lay ahead so you begin your trek back to the forest and the temple entrance. The trek to the forests edge is prosaic. You pass the fields and paddocks of village folk, and as you follow the path past the last homestead in this direction, a boy in the distance waves. A few hours later you find yourself at the edge near where you came out a few days ago. Marev easily finds the exact spot you came out, and you head towards the entrance.

After 30 minutes, Marev notes things seem unusually quiet here. Unnaturally quiet. No bird noise or rustle of small animals in the undergrowth. After a few more minutes Marev points out indications of others travelling around. It wouldn't normally be unusual given the proximity to the village, but you know the townsfolk haven't been coming into the forest for weeks and these are fresh. There are at least two sets of booted prints and one set softer footware. They seem to cross your current path of travel to the temple from the right, and head off towards the left, but are going in the same general direction.

The party moves more carefully now, following behind Marev, who picks a path for them through underbrush. With his skill and guidance the party still makes a good pace even while stalking through the forest must more quietly than before. Though he leads you a on a more circuitous route your progress towards the temple remains steady. After about an hour, Marev holds up a hand and gestures ahead. After watching for a moment, you make out two people in the distance, partly obsured by the interevening trees.

Both appear to be villagers or travellers of some sort. They appear to be dresed in commoners clothing, one male wearing a brown hood. One female female with long dark hair and a stoop or hunched back. The woman appears to be pacing back and forth uncertainly. The male, currently facing away, is still and seemingly looking off into the distance at something you cannot see. Neither appears armed.

They do not appear to have noticed you yet.

These guys are a FAR distance from you (effectiavely 'triple' near or about 100'). They are ahead of you but off the general line of your travel by about 50' to the right. At this distance you could easily avoid them if you wished, without delaying your arrival at the temple by much.